My Infinity Universe

Equipment Continued: Mirrorgates and crystal and magewood weapons

The Mirrorgate

It’s often mistaken for a PCD. In some ways it performs the function of a PCD, but they’re generally worn on the opposite wrist. A mirrorgate will allow the wearer to enter and leave the dimension of mirrors, the other side of the mirrors. It’s a place of fractured light and jagged pathways, where a misstep might leave an unwary traveler stranded in the space between until s/he goes mad. Or is rescued by one of the denizens of the dimension of mirrors.

For the most part mirrorgates are the province of Mirage, provided exclusively to them by Artificer, a mage-engineer of great power and subtlety. Only the members of Mirage are able to make use of the dimension of mirrors. (See the Places: Dimension of Mirrors entry–forthcoming).

The spells involved in creating a portal into the dimension of mirrors—by the way—is the casting of a mana strand into the surface of the mirror, then opening it up as a portal.

Crystal Weapons:

Deep in the Earth there exist rare crystal caves, said by some to have formed around the grave of a great mage lost in time. For whatever reason, these stones gain a kind of sentience, and will aid a smith in the casting of them as weapons. A high crystal blade is the only blade that can still an immortal’s heart, apparently interfering with the communication between the cells necessary to allow them to regenerate from death. A crystal weapon is their greatest fear. But bear in mind most immortals either carry or have access to crystal weapons.

Many crystal weapons also have active intelligences inside them, offering advice—solicited or otherwise—and using additional abilities on behalf of the wielder. It is also possible to rune-bind them and allow them to take on magical properties. Telepathic blades are not unknown.

A particular school of smything can also create colored crystal blades with access to an obscure type of magic known as the High Art. It appeared to be the product of a symbiotic bond between the wearer and the mage stones. In return for life energy, the gems would manipulate magic to the desires of wearer. Or that had been the intended purposes. A mistake led to the propagation of a type of stone with a relatively limited array of abilities. It is thought they use one of these programmed mage gems in the creation of their weapons.

Magewood

Said to be grown by dryads on a far off world, magewood is blacker than ebony, so black it almost gleams in the light. The black of a widow’s ass or a sinner’s soul. It makes it to Starhaven in small quantities, brought in by smugglers as well as legal couriers.

Carrying magewood enhances magical and psychic focus.

Hard as steel, sharp as paper. Magewood is deadly. And it can be trained. Rune-bound, of course. Throwing knives or axes with return runes on them. Designed to flip back around and return to sender—or simply reappear in a holster.

That can be done with crystal weapons as well, but it’s actually more common with magewood.